WASHINGTON - As the House of Representative began debate on H.R. 5825, the
"Electronic Surveillance Modernization Act," the American Civil Liberties Union
called on lawmakers to adopt a bipartisan motion to refer the bill back to the
committees, and failing that, to reject the misguided proposal. Authored by
Representative Heather Wilson (R-NM), the bill would give the president
extraordinary power and authorize the warrantless surveillance program conducted
by the National Security Agency.

"Lawmakers must stand firm in their commitment to the Constitution and reject
the president’s power grab," said Caroline Fredrickson, Director of the ACLU
Washington Legislative Office. "The Wilson bill would give the president a blank
check to ignore Fourth Amendment protections and undermine our privacy. The
Republican leadership is using national security as a wedge issue for the
upcoming elections and chipping away at the Constitution in the process."

In a move demonstrating the Republican leadership’s unwillingness to have an
open debate on the issue, the House Rules Committee rejected several bipartisan
amendments that would have brought the NSA spying back in line with the
requirements of the Constitution. Representatives Adam Schiff (D-CA), Jeff Flake
(R-AZ), Jane Harman (D-CA) and Bob Inglis (R-SC) are expected to offer a motion
to recommit the bill, with instructions.

The Wilson bill would also authorize warrantless surveillance of Americans
without showing a court any probable cause of wrongdoing and would suspend
Fourth Amendment rights for extended periods if there were an attack or whenever
the president declares an "imminent threat of attack likely to cause death,
serious injury, or substantial economic damage" exists. The ACLU has objected to
the vague language, which would create a huge loophole from the requirement of
individual court warrants to monitor Americans' conversations.

The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) already permits the
government to retroactively apply for a warrant in emergencies. The president,
however, has refused to seek warrants for surveillance of Americans under the
NSA program three days after starting an urgent wiretap - as is currently
permitted or, indeed, ever. The Wilson bill would allow the administration to
continue to bypass court approval or supervision of individual wiretaps of
American residents.

"If this bill is adopted, Congress would be authorizing more warrantless
surveillance of Americans than ever before," said Lisa Graves, ACLU Senior
Counsel for Legislative Strategy. "One federal court has already found the NSA's
warrantless spying on Americans to be unconstitutional and illegal. We implore
lawmakers to reject this effort to condone the president’s abuse of power by
granting him a legal framework for the vast and unchecked powers he
seeks."